On Your Own: The Buddy System Rebutted By Bob Halstead

[dlofting]

That about sums it up as far as I'm concerned. Properly implemented, the buddy/team system is going to be safer than solo diving in most scenarios. But when pressure is on instructors to crank divers out as quickly and cheaply as possible, quality suffers. You can see it in any area that takes time and effort to develop (trim, buoyancy, team awareness, etc). The critique of the system itself seems a bit misdirected here.

Would like to agree, but I'm hesitant. The reason is that I'm an "intermediate" diver but a very experienced back country traveler and everything in the OP makes sense to me if you substitute "hiker" for "diver". The only reason that I can see for having a buddy, from a safety point of view, is redundant air. If you substitute your own secondary air supply aren't you better off in most cases. It's the same in hiking if you carry a PLB you are able to cover almost everything that a companion would provide without the burden of looking out for them.

 

[helodriver87]

Would like to agree, but I'm hesitant. The reason is that I'm an "intermediate" diver but a very experienced back country traveler and everything in the OP makes sense to me if you substitute "hiker" for "diver". The only reason that I can see for having a buddy, from a safety point of view, is redundant air. If you substitute your own secondary air supply aren't you better off in most cases. It's the same in hiking if you carry a PLB you are able to cover almost everything that a companion would provide without the burden of looking out for them.

There are other things far more common than OOG situations. Navigational errors, entanglement, certain gear malfunctions, etc are easier to manage with a buddy. If the buddy is competent.

 

[rjack321]

In my experience, narcosis and underwater "duh" moments are also the kind of situation where a redundant brain is valuable.

 

[Bob DBF]

...I agree that the buddy system is inadequate...

It's not the system that's inadequate, it is the training or rather the lack of it, and the execution of it by divers that were not trained properly. If divers took the same attitude about deploying a DSMB, trim, weighting, buoyancy, and propulsion, they would have the same result. And do in a lot of cases, three days in the water is not enough time to develop an autonomous diver, never mind training them to be a good buddy as well.



Bob

 

[Ana]

I'm not against the buddy system but strongly disagree with it being "The WAY" to dive.
More than that I resent that people is not shown the way to be self reliant from the get go.
Is counterintuitive to only rely in buddies. Yes, potentially you have access to another brain, but how about using your own brain?

 

[helodriver87]

I'm not against the buddy system but strongly disagree with it being "The WAY" to dive.
More than that I resent that people is not shown the way to be self reliant from the get go.
Is counterintuitive to only rely in buddies. Yes, potentially you have access to another brain, but how about using your own brain?

Those aren't mutually exclusive. I don't technically need a buddy to do anything on any of my dives. I've got redundant gas, regs, lights, extra spools, stages, etc... On a routine dive, I won't use a buddy for anything. And he's just as capable of doing the dive on his own as well. But I can't even start to count the number of times having a reliable buddy has made situations easier to deal with. Or when I've been able to help out someone else. Just seems like a no brainer to me, but I was trained that way from the start.

 

[johndiver999]

Those aren't mutually exclusive. I don't technically need a buddy to do anything on any of my dives. I've got redundant gas, regs, lights, extra spools, stages, etc... On a routine dive, I won't use a buddy for anything. And he's just as capable of doing the dive on his own as well. But I can't even start to count the number of times having a reliable buddy has made situations easier to deal with. Or when I've been able to help out someone else. Just seems like a no brainer to me, but I was trained that way from the start.

If your dive is primarily a site seeing expedition, then a buddy can make little (and maybe big) problems easier to deal with and their presence shouldn't really get in the way.

However, if you are on a "mission" to take a photo, a video, cover a certain considerable distance in an efficient manner, or you are trying to catch lobsters or fish... then coordination with a buddy often is not beneficial and can be a hindrance to your productivity.

If the visibility is really low, it also takes a lot of effort to maintain good buddy contact. I think the type of diving you are doing also is a big factor in how "helpful" a buddy is on a typical dive.

 

[dlofting]

There are other things far more common than OOG situations. Navigational errors, entanglement, certain gear malfunctions, etc are easier to manage with a buddy. If the buddy is competent.

Possibly, but I'm pretty sure I have the gear and skills to handle those situations by myself. If my buddy is competent,so much the better but with a few exceptions that is not going to be the case.

 

[helodriver87]

Possibly, but I'm pretty sure I have the gear and skills to handle those situations by myself. If my buddy is competent,so much the better but with a few exceptions that is not going to be the case.

So do I. Still easier with help. But a lot of that goes to buddy choice. I'm lucky in the sense that I've got a large community of divers extensively trained with a team mindset near me, so it's always a net positive having one on the team. I've certainly had buddies that did more harm than good, but that's more reflective of their training than anything.

 

[Bob DBF]

I'm not against the buddy system but strongly disagree with it being "The WAY" to dive.
More than that I resent that people is not shown the way to be self reliant from the get go.
Is counterintuitive to only rely in buddies. Yes, potentially you have access to another brain, but how about using your own brain?

I'm in agreement, however basic SCUBA certification was started as, and is still required to be, NDL buddy diving. How it is taught is another matter.

In my initial SCUBA training, and later in my OW certification, I was trained to be self reliant as part of the safety and rescue procedures. Initially because there was one set of gear and my "instructor" was only in the water for buddy breathing on the doublehose. The OW class was off the NorCal coast and conditions can get very challenging quickly, and buddy separation is not unknown for experienced divers, let alone novices, and one may find themself finishing the dive alone.

I don't know what it is about this thread, but I'm finding myself defending buddy diving, which I rarely do, and agreeing with DIR folk. Is this Bizzaro World or something?



Bob

Solo Diver